Ending a relationship with a partner who has a porn addiction.

I'm not really sure where to begin... I'm a 22-year-old woman, and my 32-year-old ex-boyfriend just ended our relationship due to his porn addiction. We were together for nearly two years, and while we fought often, we managed to stay together. The highlight of our relationship was definitely the first month — we were intimate nearly every day, and it felt amazing. He was my first boyfriend, and since I was a virgin back then, everything was exciting and new for me. However, as time went on, our sexual intimacy became less frequent. We went from being intimate once a week to once a month, and eventually, we hadn’t been intimate at all for about five months. I initially thought it was due to stress from his new job, and when I brought it up, that’s what he said too. I tried to give him space and not pressure him, but it eventually made me really frustrated. I attempted to initiate intimacy countless times, even surprising him with sexy lingerie, but he said he felt pressured by that. I tried to touch him randomly and initiate sex, but it never worked out. He’d either say we would do it later and it would never happen, or he would claim he was too tired or give other excuses. I knew he was watching porn since I’d asked him about it before, and it started to make sense to me. When I confronted him, he admitted he wasn't addicted to porn, just to masturbating, which he claimed helped relieve his stress. This didn’t add up for me — if he was too stressed to sleep with me, then why could he find the mood to masturbate? I tolerated this for months, continuing to try and initiate intimacy until I reached my breaking point. Feeling rejected made me insecure, especially as I compared myself to the women in the porn he watched. I made the decision to leave him, and we took a month-long break during which I practiced no contact. Eventually, he reached out and confessed he was addicted to porn. He shared details about his past relationships and said this habit had started when he was a teenager but he had never seen it as a problem. He didn’t know why he couldn’t stop and promised to go to therapy, block all porn sites, quit masturbation completely, and focus on us. For about a month, everything seemed to improve. He kept me updated, went to therapy twice a week, and I felt happier than ever in our relationship. I saw him making an effort, coming up with new ideas for our sex life, and genuinely desiring me. We started going on dates more often and even signed a contract to move in together. But then things took a turn again; he stopped initiating intimacy. We were both going through a stressful time, so I told him it was okay if he was struggling, but he needed to communicate with me. I checked in with him often, reassuring him, and he always promised he wouldn’t go down that path again, insisting that he wouldn’t hurt me after losing me once. However, one day, after trying to spark intimacy and failing, I snapped. I confronted him, told him I had a gut feeling he was watching porn, and asked for the truth. He admitted he had jerked off to a picture of me the day before. Ironically, on the very same day we signed the contract to move in together, I ended our relationship. While he was out walking his dog, I looked at his search history on his computer and saw evidence of him watching porn multiple times a day, even on the days he attended therapy and the day he claimed to have masturbated to my picture. It shattered me. When he returned, there was a deafening silence. I asked him about it, and he said he couldn't tell me because he thought he could overcome it on his own. He admitted he was afraid of my reaction. I became furious because he had lied to me every time I asked about it, fully aware of how significant it was for our relationship. I ended things and left. It’s been five days now, and my heart is broken. Strangely, I still hold onto hope that things could work out and that it’s not as if he cheated or did something unforgivable. We had plans for the future — moving in together, starting a family — do you think he regrets it? Do you believe he might come back? Can a person change? I really didn’t want to give up; I truly love him. He always told me he had never gone this far for any girl, and that if we broke up, he would be alone forever. Today we saw each other briefly because I needed to give him something urgent. He brought back all my things and didn’t look me in the eye. He simply told me I deserve to be happy. I apologize if my writing has mistakes, and I hope I’m not alone in this experience. If anyone has thoughts or advice, I would really appreciate it. Thank you, and I hope you all have a great day.